Salem Public Schools
SPS families,
Yesterday during our regular Facebook Live segment, we introduced Sarah Roy, the inaugural Director of the Salem Children’s Alliance. We were thrilled to welcome Sarah as she is an important partner for the Salem Public Schools.
The mission of the Salem Children's Alliance is to partner with Salem schools and youth-serving organizations to align and mobilize resources to support Salem children, from cradle to career. Since assuming her new role in the city, Sarah has begun to work closely with stakeholders to assess the needs of our community.
In partnership with Salem Public Schools, Sarah will be leading a steering committee to complete a formal landscape analysis focused on improving early childhood education programming. In the months ahead, Sarah will be relaunching the Salem Children's Cabinet and will continue to serve as a thought partner and advocate for families in our community, advocating for meaningful and lasting change.
Previously, Sarah served as a school adjustment counselor at Salem Academy and in private practice working extensively with youth and families in the community to address challenges related to trauma and mental health.
Sarah will help us advance our strategic plan especially as it relates to our commitment to strengthen the alignment of and develop strong partnerships between the district, members of the community and external partners to build connections and support student learning.
We are looking forward to the work ahead!
Stay cool,
Steve
Our first Panorama Family/Caregiver Survey is still available and we encourage your input. We value your opinion as you are an important part in the life of your scholar and many others and a valued member of the SPS community. We would be honored if you would take a moment of your time to share your feedback with us.
Take the Survey (15 minutes)
The survey will be open from June 14-Aug. 9, 2024 and should take no more than 15 minutes. We encourage you to take one survey per student you care for, if you would like to. The survey is available in English, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese and Haitian Creole.
Should you have any questions or need support please reach out to us at 978-740-1225 or email lassade@salemk12.org
As we enter mid-July, hot and humid weather seems to be in abundance, especially the coming week. We understand that the indoor temperature of our school buildings can significantly impact the health of our students and the performance of our teachers and staff during summer school.
Our facilities team is dedicated to ensuring that the climate in each building is safe and comfortable. If the temperature in any classroom becomes uncomfortable, we will take steps to mitigate the effects of extreme heat. These measures may include:
Relocating students to cooler rooms within the building;
Limiting or canceling outdoor activities;
Allowing frequent breaks for rest and hydration;
Encouraging everyone to drink plenty of water and wear lightweight clothing;
Canceling the program or aspects of the program for the day if necessary.
We advise caregivers to provide their children with refillable water bottles and dress them in loose, lightweight clothing for the day.
Our school nurses will monitor students for any signs of heat-related illness during the summer program and will inform caregivers if their child needs to go home.
With the chart below, we encourage families to familiarize themselves with the signs and symptoms of heat-related illness so they can seek help if someone at home becomes ill.
Additionally, for families looking to stay cool, many of the city's public buildings have air conditioning and are open throughout the day. Additionally, the city's pool at Forest River Park is open from 1-6 p.m. (Tuesday, Thursday, Friday), 2-6 p.m. (Wednesday) and 1-5 p.m. on (Saturday-Sunday).
Spaces are still available for the 2024 Witches Volleyball Middle School Camp July 29-Aug. 1.
The camp is open to all rising Grade 6-9 students for a week working on skills, fun games and competing against the future stars of the program.
Early-bird registration ($40) closes Monday, July 15. Registration is $50 after July 15. For more information, contact salemwitchesvolleyball@gmail.com.
Salem Public Schools is excited to announce the successful launch of its free summer meals program, which began Monday, July 8. Running through Friday, August 16, this initiative ensures that kids and teens 18 and under can enjoy nutritious meals for free all summer. No sign-up is required, and no questions are asked. The only requirement is that kids and teens must be present to receive their meal and enjoy it on-site.
The Third Annual Mental Makeover 'The World Needs You Here' 3-Mile Walk will be held on the Salem Common Sunday, July 28. Organized by Salem High School alumni, registration can be done online or starting at 8:45 a.m. on the morning of the Walk. Cost for the Walk is:
- $35 until July 23
- $40 the week of the Walk
- $50 the day of the Walk.
All proceeds benefit Mental Makeover and scholarships created on behalf of Sarah “Sas” G. Starion and Marc Lemieux.
The Summer 2024 learning activities and requirements are available featuring an array of works suggested by the American Library Association, Salem Public Library, Massachusetts Book Awards, popular series as well as the Massachusetts School Library Association (MSLA) Summer Challenge for children and adults.
The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) recently released the 2024-25 MCAS testing schedule. This release took place after our calendar had been created and approved by the School Committee. Unfortunately, one of the MCAS testing dates conflicts with a planned early release date. Therefore, we've had to revise the calendar. Hard copies of the revised calendars were sent home with students prior to the last day of school.
The Salem-Ota Cultural Exchange (SOCE) Club annually hosts 28 students (14 boys, 14 girls aged 12 and 13) from Ota City, Japan—near Tokyo. This marks the 32nd year of this cultural
exchange. This year students will be here, July 21-30, 2024.
The Japanese students have their days filled with their own program but are looking to stay with a family with similar aged kids for the evenings/weekends. Hosts typically have kid(s) in their own home, aged 10-17. Younger and older are also welcomed. Host families often get together for social outings during free time: games, beach/pool, shopping etc.
The students all have a working use of English and there is NO expectation that the US kids/families know any Japanese.
The only requirement is Japanese students must have a bed of their own and hosts must be willing drop their student off in Salem in the morning (usually around 8:30 am) and pick them up in Salem in the evening (usually around 4 pm). (Families often share these pickups/drop-offs.) While this club is based out of Salem, we have typically had hosting families from surrounding towns as well: Beverly, Marblehead, Lynn, Swampscott, Danvers, Georgetown, etc.
To express interest in hosting, please contact Marlene Warner at 978.394.4722 or marlene.warner@gmail.com; also visit our website at: www.salemotace.org for more information.
A reminder that ParentSquare is the district platform for communication. You will receive communication from the district, your school, and your student's classroom all in one space. You can communicate 1-to-1 with teachers, sign up for parent-teacher conferences, and more.
This is the primary communication platform for all Salem Public Schools. All messages and alerts come through ParentSquare and the app makes 1-to-1 communication with your student's teachers and signing up for guardian/student conferences a breeze. If you are not receiving messages from ParentSquare or if you are having trouble, contact your school's front office. You can visit www.parentsquare.com for more information.